Relationships between ischemic changes in the cerebral cortical content of energy and noradrenergic metabolites were evaluated in young and adult gerbils. Groups of 3 week and 3 month old gerbils were subjected to 5 or 15 min of bilateral carotid artery occlusion alone or with 1 hour release. Ischemia of 5 and 15 min depleted energy-related metabolites, but did not affect the content of either norepinephrine or homovanillic acid in young and adult gerbils. At 1 hour of reflow, after 5 and 15 min of ischemia, the levels of norepinephrine significantly decreased while those of homovanillic acid increased in the adult but not in the young. At this time a complete recovery of energy reserves was seen in both the young and adult gerbils. These results indicate that the ischemic change in homeostasis of energy metabolism is not directly associated with that of the noradrenergic system in young and adult cerebral cortex.